Moodiness and anxiety are common descriptions used to identify with teenagers. This is as a result of their period in life where they are experiencing a range of emotions and their efforts to control them as well as understand who they are as individuals. As a result, it would be easy to miss depression as a condition that affects this age group.
However, according to Schrobdorff (2016), the prevalence of teenagers who experienced a Major Depressive Period (MDE) in 2005 was 8.7%. This rate jumped to 11.5% in 2014, an increase of 37%. Furthermore, despite these statistics, the same increase is not reflected in a corresponding mental health treatment. This concept reflects the growing number of teenagers who are under-treated and in worst instances, not treated at all. These statistics are complemented by the Department of Health and Human services which indicate that approximately 3 million young people aged between 12 and 17 experienced at least one MDP and more than 2 million teenagers suffered from depression that crippled their daily functioning in 2016.(Schrobdorff, 2016).
The result of this mental health catastrophe is that depression has impeded teenagers’ ability to learn, a situation that can lead to dropping out of school. Symptoms of their condition include prolonged feelings of sadness and loneliness for a period of more than 2 weeks as well as expression of self-harm and suicide. Factors that influence the development of depression among the youth at times progresses past their personal growth period and involves external factors such as household and socio-demographic considerations. The lack of treatment worsens the condition as more teenagers succumb to the torturous trail of depression. For this reason, effective approaches should be introduced to reach out and identify affected members of this age group, in order to initiate treatment.
Reference
Schrobdorff, S. (2016). There’s a startling increase in major depression among teens in the U.S. Time. Retrieved from http://time.com/4572593/increase-depression-teens-teenage-mental-health/
